# How do the parking cops know how long you've been parked in the same spot? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 9, 2003, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-parking-cops-know-how-long-youve-been-parked-in-the-same-spot/147563 "2003-01-09T18:34:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2003, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-parking-cops-know-how-long-youve-been-parked-in-the-same-spot/147563/21 "2003-01-09T21:44:47Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by NotBob13 \* > \*\*How does, say, armor-all tire wash and protectant effect this equation. That is can I chalk- proof my tires? So they can’t mark my tires? \*\* You could always apply for your tank license. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2003, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-parking-cops-know-how-long-youve-been-parked-in-the-same-spot/147563/22 "2003-01-09T21:47:09Z")
Heck, most of the parking rules are there because the local residents and businesses don’t want people parking in a single spot on a busy street all day. The police are just enforcing what the majority of the people/businesses want, which is cars shuffling in and out of the various parking spaces. ---
**Author:** ![Wyld\_Stallyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8dc957/32.png) [@Wyld\_Stallyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wyld_Stallyn)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2003, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-parking-cops-know-how-long-youve-been-parked-in-the-same-spot/147563/23 "2003-01-09T21:52:13Z")
Permits were like 250 a year. However, having a permit did not make you invulnerable to ticketing; you had to park in your specific lot (none of which were close to where I was living) or else you were ticketed as if you had no permit. I think my alma mater made just as much money off of parking tickets/permits as anything else \, I won’t tell you exactly which one it is but it’s in western NY and rhymes with booniversity of lochester. ---
**Author:** ![BobT](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e8cbc/32.png) [@BobT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobT)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2003, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-parking-cops-know-how-long-youve-been-parked-in-the-same-spot/147563/24 "2003-01-09T21:53:13Z")
Here is how the law is phrased in the City of Los Angeles. > [@](#): > > (b) No person shall remove any chalk mark placed upon a vehicle pursuant to this section unless such vehicle has been removed from City streets or has been driven a minimum of one mile after leaving the parked location where the chalk mark was affixed I can’t find what the penalty is, but I think in most jurisdictions, it increases with each offense. It seems to have been moved out of the criminal realm in California now however. ---
**Author:** ![Wyld\_Stallyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8dc957/32.png) [@Wyld\_Stallyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wyld_Stallyn)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2003, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-parking-cops-know-how-long-youve-been-parked-in-the-same-spot/147563/25 "2003-01-09T21:55:05Z")
By the way, Lsura, I just noticed your location. Do the following words have any meaning for you? I’ve had years of cramped up city life Trapped like a duck in a pen. All I know is it’s a pity life, Can’t be simple again… ---
**Author:** ![Lsura](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7993a0/32.png) [@Lsura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lsura)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2003, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-parking-cops-know-how-long-youve-been-parked-in-the-same-spot/147563/26 "2003-01-09T22:13:38Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Wyld Stallyn \* > \*\*By the way, Lsura, I just noticed your location. Do the following words have any meaning for you? > > I’ve had years of cramped up city life > Trapped like a duck in a pen. > All I know is it’s a pity life, > Can’t be simple again… \*\* Unfortunately, yes: \*Wish that I was on ol’ Rocky Top Down in the Tennessee hills; Ain’t no smoggy smoke on Rocky Top, Ain’t no telephone bills. Once I had a girl on Rocky Top, Half bear, other half cat; Wild as a mink but sweet as soda pop, I still dream about that. Rocky Top, you’ll always be Home sweet home to me, Good ol’ Rocky Top, Rocky Top, Tennessee, Rocky Top, Tennessee.\* I’ll refrain from typing the whole thing, eh? ---
**Author:** ![Sofa\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/58956e/32.png) [@Sofa\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sofa_King)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2003, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-parking-cops-know-how-long-youve-been-parked-in-the-same-spot/147563/27 "2003-01-09T22:27:02Z")
Just going by **BobT** ’s quote there, it occurs to me that nothing is said about taking your own piece of chalk and marking the entire circumfrence of your tire… ---
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2003, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-parking-cops-know-how-long-youve-been-parked-in-the-same-spot/147563/28 "2003-01-10T00:41:09Z")
> [@](#): > > Why can’t you erase the chalk? You can - if you know what to look for and where to look. And, of course, there’s no one watching as you do it. Careful. ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2003, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-parking-cops-know-how-long-youve-been-parked-in-the-same-spot/147563/29 "2003-01-10T02:05:50Z")
I have a hard time buying the whole “we can write on your car and you better not wipe it off OR ELSE” bit. But if it’s the law, it’s the law. I just can’t believe it really _is_ the law. > [@](#): > > In the District of Columbia, the law was that the time limit applied to parking on the whole length of the block. I once moved my car onto a totally different street to avoid exceeding the 2 hour parking limit (I was not in my residential zone). I got a ticket anyway, that said something like “exceeded allowed limit in zone 6”. I took that as meaning you can’t park longer than 2 hours anywhere in the entire city zone without a residential parking sticker. I’ve since learned that whatever the parking enforcement people say, goes. ---
**Author:** ![mightyaphrodite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/47e85d/32.png) [@mightyaphrodite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mightyaphrodite)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2003, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-parking-cops-know-how-long-youve-been-parked-in-the-same-spot/147563/30 "2003-01-10T04:17:55Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Lsura \* > \*\*Good grief! How much did a permit cost? Where I am, it’s $155 for the Fall-Spring academic year, and another…$50ish for the summer permit (summer cost is an estimate - I won’t know until that actually gets here). \*\* Yeah, really. Where I go to university, the permits cost $104, but there is a rumour that they’ll be going up to more than double that next year. ---
**Author:** ![Ficer67](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c57346/32.png) [@Ficer67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ficer67)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2003, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-parking-cops-know-how-long-youve-been-parked-in-the-same-spot/147563/31 "2003-01-10T07:44:35Z")
I got a part time job on campus, and they gave me a parking permit ---
**Author:** ![stuyguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@stuyguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stuyguy)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2003, 7:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-parking-cops-know-how-long-youve-been-parked-in-the-same-spot/147563/32 "2003-01-10T07:47:16Z")
FWIW, the booniversity of lochester does something that rhymes with “gucks.” Did time there for one year then got out fast. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2003, 8:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-parking-cops-know-how-long-youve-been-parked-in-the-same-spot/147563/33 "2003-01-10T08:47:33Z")
I’m pretty sure the traffic wardens in the UK don’t mess about with bits of chalk. (It might smudge their nice neat uniforms.) Here, the signs will say something like “Parking limited to one hour. Return prohibited within one hour.” That way, they can patrol every, say, every 30 mins and note down the registration numbers, and you can’t use the excuse that you’ve driven round the block or whatever. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2003, 10:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-parking-cops-know-how-long-youve-been-parked-in-the-same-spot/147563/34 "2003-01-10T10:29:44Z")
I can’t believe it has gotten this far without mention of the parking cop scene in “Blazing Saddles.” The PC rides by the saloon, bopping all the horses’ legs with a chalk bag. A few seconds later, all the cowboys rush out to wipe the chalk off. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2003, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-parking-cops-know-how-long-youve-been-parked-in-the-same-spot/147563/35 "2003-01-10T11:16:01Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by r\_k \* > \*\*I’m pretty sure the traffic wardens in the UK don’t mess about with bits of chalk. (It might smudge their nice neat uniforms.) > > Here, the signs will say something like “Parking limited to one hour. Return prohibited within one hour.” That way, they can patrol every, say, every 30 mins and note down the registration numbers, and you can’t use the excuse that you’ve driven round the block or whatever. \*\* Yes; I’ve seen them noting numbers into some sort of data collection device. ---
**Author:** ![samboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cdc98d/32.png) [@samboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samboy)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2003, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-parking-cops-know-how-long-youve-been-parked-in-the-same-spot/147563/36 "2003-01-10T12:02:28Z")
Here in Adelaide, we have the parking cops from hell. They have these little handheld devices (about the size of a large walkie-talkie) that they point at and scan your licence place (I think) as they walk around. They have completely dispensed with the chalk and the thingy tells them if you are violating the limit. The bugger of a thing is that the device will not distinguish between a space in the ‘two hour limit’ at the front of the Km long street or the back, so if you move your car to another space in the same section (not sure how much it covers) you will get booked all the same. As I have screamed in the street more than once: BASTARDS!!! Sam ($200 and counting) ---
**Author:** ![Bongmaster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Bongmaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bongmaster)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2003, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-parking-cops-know-how-long-youve-been-parked-in-the-same-spot/147563/37 "2003-01-10T16:32:33Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by BobT \* > \*\*I believe that if you are caught erasing the chalk on your tires here in California, you can be arrested and charged with a far more serious offense than a parking ticket. > > In California, parking tickets are handled as civil matters, but erasing the chalk is a criminal matter. \*\* That’s insane, I can get in criminal trouble for removing marks someone drew on MY tires? I don’t like the idea that they can touch my car at all, what if I have a proximity alarm or something? ---
**Author:** ![hazel-rah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/73ab20/32.png) [@hazel-rah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hazel-rah)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2003, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-parking-cops-know-how-long-youve-been-parked-in-the-same-spot/147563/38 "2003-01-10T16:53:38Z")
Maybe you should keep your car in your bedroom and just rub it with a diaper, **Bongmaster**. ---
**Author:** ![zuma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e9c0ed/32.png) [@zuma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zuma)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2003, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-parking-cops-know-how-long-youve-been-parked-in-the-same-spot/147563/39 "2003-01-10T16:55:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Lsura \* > \*\*Good grief! How much did a permit cost? Where I am, it’s $155 for the Fall-Spring academic year, and another…$50ish for the summer permit (summer cost is an estimate - I won’t know until that actually gets here). \*\* Hehe. This reminds me of my strategy in the 80s while attending san jose state. Parking permits were about 120 per semester, while parking tickets cost 13 dollars. At one point I experimented by parking in the teachers’ spaces and had about 8-10 tickets per semester. It all ended up costing about the same, but I did not have the long lines and walks from the student parking garages. Instead I happily paid the occasional fines and enjoyed parking very close to my classrooms. ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2003, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-parking-cops-know-how-long-youve-been-parked-in-the-same-spot/147563/40 "2003-01-10T17:28:37Z")
Parking passes at my college are around six hundred bucks a year for the remote lots (which are about a half mile away from the classroos. Luckly the bus service around campus is very, very good. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-parking-cops-know-how-long-youve-been-parked-in-the-same-spot/147563.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-the-parking-cops-know-how-long-youve-been-parked-in-the-same-spot/147563.md?page=3)